Kirk Cousins was in his eighth game in his new role as a starting quarterback in the NFL when Tom Brady and the New England Patriots roughed up Cousins’ Washington Redskins with a 17-point win that dropped Cousins to 3-5 on the season.

At the time, Cousins felt like he was sinking more than swimming. An injury to Robert Griffin III had made him the starting quarterback in 2015 and suddenly his three years of prep work as an NFL understudy didn’t feel like enough.

After another loss in a game with another interception (nine at that point to 10 touchdowns), Cousins sought out Brady at midfield, hoping to get a simple question answered by arguably the greatest player to ever play quarterback.

“At what point did it start clicking for you?” Cousins asked Brady.

“Essentially what I am asking him,” Cousins said, “was, ‘At what point did you have it completely figured out?’”